The federal government is expected to recognize that rescue workers and people living near Ground Zero on 9/11 got cancer as a result, according to a published report.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health will announce this week that cancer will be among the illnesses covered in the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, the New York Post reports.

"There’s new scientific evidence," Michael Barasch, a lawyer for first responders and residents told the Post, "that dust is what is now linked to not only the respiratory illnesses, but all these cancers."

The Zadroga Act — which was named after NYPD Detective James Zadroga, who died at age 34 after working in Ground Zero — passed into law two years ago. Despite the hundreds of sick responders, the act did not cover cancer because of a supposed lack of scientific evidence linking cancer to Ground Zero toxins.